Secretly Photographing Up a Woman's Skirt Is Legal in Georgia

Thanks to a legal loophole, a Georgia court just ruled that people can take secret photos and videos up women's skirts as long as they're in public. Even worse? The counterintuitive decision can't be changed until next year.

After a man filmed "upskirt" videos of a woman grocery shopping, a grand jury convicted him of criminal invasion of privacy. Surveillance video shows the Publix employee used his cellphone at least four times to take videos. Although he lost his case, the man then fought back based on a technicality — and won.

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According to Georgia law, it's illegal for "[a]ny person, through the use of any device, without the consent of all persons observed, to observe, photograph or record the activities of another which occur in any private place and out of public view." But read the last part closely — the defendant acted in a public place, so the law didn't apply. And unfortunately, the appeals court agreed.

While the ruling admits upskirt photos invade women's privacy, the specific wording means if they're taken on sidewalks or in stores, it's okay even without consent. As for fixing this horrible problem, the court passed off the responsibility to the state's lawmakers, who won't convene until next spring.

"We're going to have six months or so where these creeps can run around doing this stuff," State Senator Vincent Fort told CBS 46. He then promised to introduce legislation to fix this awful loophole. But until then, the women of Georgia need to be on the lookout.